Grandaddy Souf Speaks About Why He Joined HCP
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How were you able to put out an independent album when you’re still technically under contract with SRC/Universal?
[SRC] said they were ready to go ahead and provide me with assistance to release this underground album, but then they reneged on everything they said they were gonna do. They did the white label for “Crabs in a Bucket,” but they wanted to wait and see how people responded. Here we go with the same bullshit all over again. So I’m like, fuck it, I’m gonna go ahead and do this unauthorized mixtape. It’s been rumors that I’ve been lying about my deal and shit. I ain’t gotta lie about a muthafuckin’ thing, but a lot of consumers don’t understand the industry. They sat on Alicia Keys for like three years before she came out. There’s a lot of corporate stuff involved. I still gotta eat, so that’s why I put out this bootleg project. [SRC CEO] Steve Rifkind really ain’t have no problem with it. I think New York labels have become spoiled with Southern artists, because they know we can go out and sell units on our own independently. I didn’t really go full-fledge with this album yet, though, because I just became a member of [Three 6 Mafia’s] Hypnotized Minds. We’re going to repackage the album. I’m gonna take a few songs off the bootleg project and re-release it with a new title. Three 6 gon’ do some production for the re-release. I’m also getting ready to do a compilation with my homeboy Antonio Tarver. He’s the boxer who knocked out Roy Jones Jr., for those that don’t know.
How did you become part of Hypnotized Minds?
I’m an extended member of the camp. [Three 6 Mafia and I] were signed together over at Loud/Sony a few years ago. When I got my new deal at SRC/Universal I did a song with them called “Gameroom,” and we’ve kept in touch ever since. I also have two songs with Petey Pablo, but none of those features made the album because of legal issues with clearances and such. Three 6 Mafia invited me out to L.A. to be in their “Choices 2” movie. We respect each other as businessmen. Every indie project they’ve put out has sold no less than 80,000 units. When you’re talking about independent numbers you’re making $8-10 per album, so every time they come out they’re selling close to a million dollars. I can’t keep sitting back and losing time. I’m not getting younger. Like I said on the CD, SRC is gonna wait til I really am a Grandaddy to put my album out! I’m even considering moving to Memphis. The DJs up there show me a lot of love, playing my shit on the radio and in the clubs. It feels like a slap in the face when your own city don’t support you, especially when you’ve already made some noise. Maybe I’ve grown as far as I can grow here in Orlando. I still love my city, but it’s all the politics.
Why is it so hard to get radio spins in Orlando?
I don’t know. You tell me? I’m gonna keep it real: I have literally begged some of the DJs at [Orlando radio station] 102 Jamz for spins, and they’re supposed to be my fuckin’ homeboys. When they have their birthday bashes and shit I come through and I don’t ask for one fuckin’ nickel. I get on stage and perform, I bring artists through from out of town, but hey, I ain’t gonna go through that shit no more. If another market is willing to embrace me, then I’m gonna put all my energy and focus into that market. My boy DJ Dirty from South Carolina did a mixtape with me and he’s got my shit in circulation real strong in the streets. The record is charting at certain record pools in South Carolina. I understand that some records work better in certain markets. I watch BDS and I see what’s going on. I just checked my radio spins on “Crabs in a Bucket.” I had 24 spins on the record just last week. 102 Jamz has had that record for almost three months, and guess how many times they’ve played it? Seven times, total. Seven times in more than ten weeks? That’s the kinda shit that shows you that there’s no support there. If a DJ claims to be my muthafuckin’ homeboy and he does his own mixshow, there’s no excuse why my record or another local artist isn’t being played during his 60-minute mixshow. And I know somebody’s gonna read this and tell him, “Grandaddy hatin’ on you.” Bitch, I just call it like I see it. Can’t nobody give me a valid reason why my shit can’t get no spins. I sat there and heard them say, “Yeah, this shit is fire!” If it’s a tight record, I should have more than seven spins in three months. And I’m talking about specific DJs at 102 Jamz, I’m talking about whoever puts the records on the turntable. If you’re telling me the record is tight and you’re co-signing for it, why isn’t it getting spins? Are you waiting on a check from the label or what? Then I ask the label reps why they aren’t being more persistent and they’re telling me, “I don’t know what’s up with DJ such-and-such, they on some real Hollywood shit.” Okay, true enough. I heard all that before. But if you claim to be my real muthafuckin’ homeboy, the bottom line is that you’ve got an obligation to keep it real with me. If my shit ain’t bangin’, don’t tell me it’s hot! It ain’t gonna hurt my feelings. Just don’t lie to me. If we playin’ on the same team, goddammit, and we wear each others jerseys and shit, don’t suit up in my jersey and lie to me. You’d be better off just stayin’ fifty fuckin’ feet away from me. The label says you’ve got to start your fire in your own backyard and they don’t see it getting hot here, so they don’t take the initiative to do it anywhere else. I have stressed this shit so hard to muthafuckers I’ve damn near had tears in my eyes. Muthafuckers always talkin’ about, “I got you, dawg.” But they ain’t got shit.
Do you think radio is the reason why it’s so hard for artists to come out of Orlando?
Smilez & Southstar had a record produced by DJ Nasty and it got a lot of fuckin’ spins. Can you explain that to me? Ain’t no disrespect to Smilez & South, I’m happy for them. But these DJs at the station ain’t fuckin’ with my shit. They always screamin’ about the dirty South, but when I go to the club the only down South shit I hear is the shit that’s in rotation on BET.
Do you think it’s necessary to have radio support for your project to blow?
When I was indie I didn’t give a fuck about radio at all. I’ve been signed with a major for three years now, and “spins” is all they know up there in New York. They don’t know nothing about muthafuckin’ down South music. All they know is documentation. They’ve got their MBAs or whatever, fuckin’ degrees, but they don’t understand the streets. The only thing that registers to them is spins. That’s why so many records flop like a muthafucka. They see spins, so they release the album and it flops. Consumers are sick of albums with only two or three tight songs. Labels throw shit against the wall and see what sticks. This corporate infrastructure has really fucked up the whole rap game. A lot of groups come with one hot-ass song and that’s it. The label just makes enough money to recoup and make a profit. They don’t give a fuck about me. It’s a savage industry. I do have loyal fans, though, and that’s all I give a fuck about. I don’t give a fuck about this corporate infrastructure and that’s why I did what I had to do. You can pick up the bootleg album at local mom & pop stores or you can order it online at www.parramo.com .
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
How were you able to put out an independent album when you’re still technically under contract with SRC/Universal?
[SRC] said they were ready to go ahead and provide me with assistance to release this underground album, but then they reneged on everything they said they were gonna do. They did the white label for “Crabs in a Bucket,” but they wanted to wait and see how people responded. Here we go with the same bullshit all over again. So I’m like, fuck it, I’m gonna go ahead and do this unauthorized mixtape. It’s been rumors that I’ve been lying about my deal and shit. I ain’t gotta lie about a muthafuckin’ thing, but a lot of consumers don’t understand the industry. They sat on Alicia Keys for like three years before she came out. There’s a lot of corporate stuff involved. I still gotta eat, so that’s why I put out this bootleg project. [SRC CEO] Steve Rifkind really ain’t have no problem with it. I think New York labels have become spoiled with Southern artists, because they know we can go out and sell units on our own independently. I didn’t really go full-fledge with this album yet, though, because I just became a member of [Three 6 Mafia’s] Hypnotized Minds. We’re going to repackage the album. I’m gonna take a few songs off the bootleg project and re-release it with a new title. Three 6 gon’ do some production for the re-release. I’m also getting ready to do a compilation with my homeboy Antonio Tarver. He’s the boxer who knocked out Roy Jones Jr., for those that don’t know.
How did you become part of Hypnotized Minds?
I’m an extended member of the camp. [Three 6 Mafia and I] were signed together over at Loud/Sony a few years ago. When I got my new deal at SRC/Universal I did a song with them called “Gameroom,” and we’ve kept in touch ever since. I also have two songs with Petey Pablo, but none of those features made the album because of legal issues with clearances and such. Three 6 Mafia invited me out to L.A. to be in their “Choices 2” movie. We respect each other as businessmen. Every indie project they’ve put out has sold no less than 80,000 units. When you’re talking about independent numbers you’re making $8-10 per album, so every time they come out they’re selling close to a million dollars. I can’t keep sitting back and losing time. I’m not getting younger. Like I said on the CD, SRC is gonna wait til I really am a Grandaddy to put my album out! I’m even considering moving to Memphis. The DJs up there show me a lot of love, playing my shit on the radio and in the clubs. It feels like a slap in the face when your own city don’t support you, especially when you’ve already made some noise. Maybe I’ve grown as far as I can grow here in Orlando. I still love my city, but it’s all the politics.
Why is it so hard to get radio spins in Orlando?
I don’t know. You tell me? I’m gonna keep it real: I have literally begged some of the DJs at [Orlando radio station] 102 Jamz for spins, and they’re supposed to be my fuckin’ homeboys. When they have their birthday bashes and shit I come through and I don’t ask for one fuckin’ nickel. I get on stage and perform, I bring artists through from out of town, but hey, I ain’t gonna go through that shit no more. If another market is willing to embrace me, then I’m gonna put all my energy and focus into that market. My boy DJ Dirty from South Carolina did a mixtape with me and he’s got my shit in circulation real strong in the streets. The record is charting at certain record pools in South Carolina. I understand that some records work better in certain markets. I watch BDS and I see what’s going on. I just checked my radio spins on “Crabs in a Bucket.” I had 24 spins on the record just last week. 102 Jamz has had that record for almost three months, and guess how many times they’ve played it? Seven times, total. Seven times in more than ten weeks? That’s the kinda shit that shows you that there’s no support there. If a DJ claims to be my muthafuckin’ homeboy and he does his own mixshow, there’s no excuse why my record or another local artist isn’t being played during his 60-minute mixshow. And I know somebody’s gonna read this and tell him, “Grandaddy hatin’ on you.” Bitch, I just call it like I see it. Can’t nobody give me a valid reason why my shit can’t get no spins. I sat there and heard them say, “Yeah, this shit is fire!” If it’s a tight record, I should have more than seven spins in three months. And I’m talking about specific DJs at 102 Jamz, I’m talking about whoever puts the records on the turntable. If you’re telling me the record is tight and you’re co-signing for it, why isn’t it getting spins? Are you waiting on a check from the label or what? Then I ask the label reps why they aren’t being more persistent and they’re telling me, “I don’t know what’s up with DJ such-and-such, they on some real Hollywood shit.” Okay, true enough. I heard all that before. But if you claim to be my real muthafuckin’ homeboy, the bottom line is that you’ve got an obligation to keep it real with me. If my shit ain’t bangin’, don’t tell me it’s hot! It ain’t gonna hurt my feelings. Just don’t lie to me. If we playin’ on the same team, goddammit, and we wear each others jerseys and shit, don’t suit up in my jersey and lie to me. You’d be better off just stayin’ fifty fuckin’ feet away from me. The label says you’ve got to start your fire in your own backyard and they don’t see it getting hot here, so they don’t take the initiative to do it anywhere else. I have stressed this shit so hard to muthafuckers I’ve damn near had tears in my eyes. Muthafuckers always talkin’ about, “I got you, dawg.” But they ain’t got shit.
Do you think radio is the reason why it’s so hard for artists to come out of Orlando?
Smilez & Southstar had a record produced by DJ Nasty and it got a lot of fuckin’ spins. Can you explain that to me? Ain’t no disrespect to Smilez & South, I’m happy for them. But these DJs at the station ain’t fuckin’ with my shit. They always screamin’ about the dirty South, but when I go to the club the only down South shit I hear is the shit that’s in rotation on BET.
Do you think it’s necessary to have radio support for your project to blow?
When I was indie I didn’t give a fuck about radio at all. I’ve been signed with a major for three years now, and “spins” is all they know up there in New York. They don’t know nothing about muthafuckin’ down South music. All they know is documentation. They’ve got their MBAs or whatever, fuckin’ degrees, but they don’t understand the streets. The only thing that registers to them is spins. That’s why so many records flop like a muthafucka. They see spins, so they release the album and it flops. Consumers are sick of albums with only two or three tight songs. Labels throw shit against the wall and see what sticks. This corporate infrastructure has really fucked up the whole rap game. A lot of groups come with one hot-ass song and that’s it. The label just makes enough money to recoup and make a profit. They don’t give a fuck about me. It’s a savage industry. I do have loyal fans, though, and that’s all I give a fuck about. I don’t give a fuck about this corporate infrastructure and that’s why I did what I had to do. You can pick up the bootleg album at local mom & pop stores or you can order it online at www.parramo.com .